:00:00. > :00:13.South Korea's president strongly criticises the captain and crew in
:00:14. > :00:15.the country's ferry disaster. As pictures emerge of the captain
:00:16. > :00:18.receiving treatment after the vessel went down, the President says his
:00:19. > :00:23.actions in abandoning ship were tantamount to murder.
:00:24. > :00:28.President Assad calls snap elections in Syria despite the ongoing civil
:00:29. > :00:32.war. Teachers vote for strike action, in
:00:33. > :00:36.a row with the Government over pay and working conditions.
:00:37. > :00:39.Russia accuses Ukraine of violating the Geneva accord after three people
:00:40. > :00:44.were killed, at a checkpoint in the east of Ukraine.
:00:45. > :01:07.And Two's company. Celebrating 50 years of the BBC's second channel.
:01:08. > :01:12.Good evening. South Korea's president has strongly criticised
:01:13. > :01:15.the captain of the ferry that sank - and some of his crew - saying their
:01:16. > :01:19.actions in abandoning ship were tantamount to murder. Her comments
:01:20. > :01:22.came as another four crew members were arrested, after yesterday's
:01:23. > :01:27.release of the last audio conversations with the coastguard
:01:28. > :01:30.before the ferry sank. Divers have now removed 64 bodies from the
:01:31. > :01:36.vessel, but 240 people - mainly teenagers - are still missing. Lucy
:01:37. > :01:47.Williamson reports from the town of Mokpo in south Korea. The weather is
:01:48. > :01:52.no longer clouding the painful truth here. The growing body count is a
:01:53. > :01:56.sharp reminder of who survived and who didn't. With different actions,
:01:57. > :02:04.different responses, how many of them might have lived? TRANSLATION:
:02:05. > :02:09.This is a 100% man-made disaster. If the government acted quicker, all of
:02:10. > :02:16.the children would have been saved. The president today pointed the
:02:17. > :02:19.blame elsewhere. The conduct of the captain and some crew members is
:02:20. > :02:24.unfathomable from the viewpoint of common sense and it was like an act
:02:25. > :02:30.of murder that cannot and should not be tolerated. Footage like this of
:02:31. > :02:34.the captain of the ferry, rescued while his passengers drowned, has
:02:35. > :02:38.fuelled bitter but as yet unproven accusations. And this, in interview
:02:39. > :02:45.from several years ago, where he tells the camera... Passengers are
:02:46. > :02:50.safe with me if they follow the instructions of my crew. What did
:02:51. > :02:55.the crew cause this disaster? The shipbuilders of south Korea are some
:02:56. > :03:00.of the best in the world, but 300 people are now presumed dead. How
:03:01. > :03:06.could a routine passenger trip go so badly wrong? So far, the spotlight
:03:07. > :03:11.has been on a sharp turn in steering, ordered by a 25-year-old
:03:12. > :03:18.novice while the captain was away. But blame may not be that neatly
:03:19. > :03:23.defined. There are multiple factors involved. Why was such a sharp turn
:03:24. > :03:27.ordered in the first place? That is the trigger, but then the cargo may
:03:28. > :03:33.not have been securely fastened, which can make a sharp turn very
:03:34. > :03:38.dangerous. Also the ship was modified which changes the centre of
:03:39. > :03:43.gravity. If you took away the other factors, the cargo and the height,
:03:44. > :03:51.and made the same turn, would the ship have capsized? No. To some this
:03:52. > :04:01.is a national disgrace, and the divisions looks set to widen as the
:04:02. > :04:04.sea slowly gives up its dead. A presidential election is to be
:04:05. > :04:07.held in Syria in June despite the civil war. President Assad is
:04:08. > :04:10.expected to seek a third, seven-year term. The uprising against him has
:04:11. > :04:19.left an estimated 150,000 people dead, and forced millions from their
:04:20. > :04:23.homes. Jim Muir is in Beirut. What is your reading of this move? I
:04:24. > :04:27.think it shows the growing confidence on the part of President
:04:28. > :04:31.Assad. He said recently he thought the situation in Syria was turning
:04:32. > :04:36.around and his forces on the ground are making slow but steady
:04:37. > :04:41.methodical progress in establishing control over the central areas of
:04:42. > :04:44.the country. While a few months ago people were talking about him may be
:04:45. > :04:49.being extended for a couple of years while some kind of transition could
:04:50. > :04:54.be negotiated, he is now signalling clearly that he intends to stay for
:04:55. > :05:00.another seven-year term. Let's look at the context of the announcement
:05:01. > :05:03.today. The announcement about the elections was made by the Speaker of
:05:04. > :05:07.parliament, it came just hours after the parliament building itself came
:05:08. > :05:11.under mortar attack with bombs exploding nearby and several people
:05:12. > :05:16.killed. If that can happen in the centre of the capital, can credible
:05:17. > :05:22.elections really be held in worst hit areas? But the announcement made
:05:23. > :05:27.it clear elections would go ahead on June the 3rd as though the situation
:05:28. > :05:30.were normal. It called on candidates to register within ten days.
:05:31. > :05:41.Everybody knows they will only be one serious contender, President
:05:42. > :05:45.Assad. He has been out and about as rarely before, showing a new
:05:46. > :05:49.confidence. He visited a Christian town to the north of Damascus which
:05:50. > :05:54.was recently won backed by government troops, continuing their
:05:55. > :05:59.drive to secure supply routes to the capital. The town has changed hands
:06:00. > :06:03.several times as the battle has ebbed and flowed over months. It has
:06:04. > :06:08.become one of the symbols of the war, now in its fourth year, and it
:06:09. > :06:16.shows that at present the tide is flowing in the favour of the regime.
:06:17. > :06:19.The war is still far from won, rebels still control much of the
:06:20. > :06:23.countryside in the north, east and south, but the regime is
:06:24. > :06:28.consolidating in the key central areas. With these elections, it is
:06:29. > :06:34.signalling that its future is no longer up for negotiation.
:06:35. > :06:37.The National Union of Teachers have voted to stage further strikes in
:06:38. > :06:39.their long-running dispute over pay, pensions and conditions. At their
:06:40. > :06:41.annual conference in Brighton, delegates overwhelming supported
:06:42. > :06:44.further industrial action in England and Wales for the end of June unless
:06:45. > :06:47.significant progress is made in talks with the Government. From
:06:48. > :06:53.Brighton, our education correspondent, Reeta Chakrabarti
:06:54. > :06:56.reports. If it's Easter it's a teachers'
:06:57. > :07:01.conference and another call for strike action. The NUT could now go
:07:02. > :07:06.out on its fourth national strike in three years with the potential for
:07:07. > :07:09.it to last more than a day. The motion does not exclude us from
:07:10. > :07:13.taking strike action with other unions that will be coming out, and
:07:14. > :07:18.if that means more than one day, there is nothing that precludes that
:07:19. > :07:22.from happening in this motion. We have got to send the message out
:07:23. > :07:26.loud and clear. Gove must go! Gove must go! The conference is now
:07:27. > :07:29.committed to strike action in June if there is no progress in talks
:07:30. > :07:32.with Government. This union has been at loggerheads with the Coalition
:07:33. > :07:37.from the outset and there is no resolution in sight. The ongoing
:07:38. > :07:41.dispute is over pay, pensions and workload. The Department for
:07:42. > :07:44.Education said further strikes would only disrupt parents and children
:07:45. > :07:52.and damage the reputation of teachers, so why do it? What else
:07:53. > :07:56.can we do? We have tried campaigning, we have tried talking.
:07:57. > :08:03.Parents are very supportive. We had a stall in Oldham not so long ago,
:08:04. > :08:05.and everyone was very supportive. We believe that teachers are very
:08:06. > :08:08.reluctant at taking strike action but unfortunately, because of the
:08:09. > :08:11.persistent failure of Mr Gove to actually engage in meaningful
:08:12. > :08:18.dialogue, we are left with no other option. The union went out just last
:08:19. > :08:22.month and it's threatening even more action in the autumn and next year.
:08:23. > :08:31.Strikes could be averted if there is progress in talks but that, at the
:08:32. > :08:34.moment, doesn't look likely. Russia has accused the Ukrainian
:08:35. > :08:37.government of breaking the terms of an agreement, forged in Geneva last
:08:38. > :08:42.week, aimed at resolving the crisis in Ukraine. Sergey Lavrov says the
:08:43. > :08:47.authorities have failed to disarm illegal groups despite agreeing to
:08:48. > :08:50.do so. His comments follow a shoot out at a checkpoint over the
:08:51. > :08:52.weekend, near the eastern town of Sloviansk. Russia has blamed
:08:53. > :08:57.Ukrainian nationalists for the incident, in which at least three
:08:58. > :09:03.people were killed. Our correspondent Daniel Sandford is in
:09:04. > :09:10.Donetsk. Another flash point on the ground, what have the Russians been
:09:11. > :09:18.saying? You may remember that here in eastern Ukraine, pro-Russian
:09:19. > :09:24.protesters hold police stations and armed men hold the town of
:09:25. > :09:28.Sloviansk. What the Russian foreign minister said today was that armed
:09:29. > :09:32.militants are ruthlessly opening fire without warning, and there has
:09:33. > :09:37.been a surge in appeals to Russia from people here to help them, and
:09:38. > :09:41.that Russia has been put in a difficult position. He said those
:09:42. > :09:46.pursuing a civil war, Russia would cut them short. Very worrying words
:09:47. > :09:52.this evening from Sergey Lavrov, being seen as a threat for Russia to
:09:53. > :09:56.take military intervention. And the west preparing more sanctions
:09:57. > :10:06.against Russia. Where do you think this leaves Geneva, the deal that
:10:07. > :10:09.was done? It is in a very poor state now. The people have not left the
:10:10. > :10:11.buildings and the police stations as they were supposed to. It will need
:10:12. > :10:18.pressure from Russia to persuade them to leave the buildings, and
:10:19. > :10:31.Russia is putting pressure on the Kiev government, accusing them of
:10:32. > :10:33.not reining in their own extremists. David Cameron's comments about
:10:34. > :10:36.Christianity and Britain's status as a Christian country have come under
:10:37. > :10:40.attack, from a group of more than 50 prominent figures. In a letter to
:10:41. > :10:43.the Daily Telegraph, organised by the British Humanist Association,
:10:44. > :10:45.they accuse the Prime Minister of fostering division in society. This
:10:46. > :10:52.report from our Religious Affairs correspondent, Robert Pigott,
:10:53. > :10:55.contains flash photography. In the weeks before Christians celebrated
:10:56. > :10:58.Easter, the most important moment in the Church's calendar, David Cameron
:10:59. > :11:00.spoke several times about his own Christian faith. Mr Cameron said
:11:01. > :11:03.Christianity really mattered to him and said Easter was a time to
:11:04. > :11:06.reflect on the countless acts of kindness carried out by those who
:11:07. > :11:09.followed Christ. He said he found moments of peace in his own church
:11:10. > :11:15.in Kensington and said Britain should be confident of its status as
:11:16. > :11:18.a Christian country. Now comes a letter from 50 leading secularists
:11:19. > :11:18.in the Daily Telegraph, claiming that characterising Britain as
:11:19. > :11:41.Christian is harmful to society. The letter's organiser claimed there
:11:42. > :11:47.had been a disturbing trend among politicians referring to Britain as
:11:48. > :11:50.a Christian country. Religious faith is something that you should feel
:11:51. > :11:53.that is private and important to you. It's not something you want to
:11:54. > :11:56.inflict on others. The Prime Minister can be Christian, there is
:11:57. > :12:00.nothing wrong with that, but to say the rest of us live in a Christian
:12:01. > :12:02.country is outmoded and I think a lot of people would feel very
:12:03. > :12:04.uncomfortable about that. Some have seen David Cameron's repeated
:12:05. > :12:07.endorsements of Christianity as being aimed at a Conservative
:12:08. > :12:13.heartland, bruised by his support for same-sex marriage. But Downing
:12:14. > :12:16.Street insists that David Cameron has said on many previous occasions
:12:17. > :12:20.that while Britain is strengthened by being a home to many different
:12:21. > :12:25.faiths, it shouldn't be afraid to identify as a Christian country.
:12:26. > :12:29.They point to Mr Cameron's speech three years ago on the 400th
:12:30. > :12:32.anniversary of the King James Bible in which he said the Bible had given
:12:33. > :12:38.Britain a set of morals and values that made the country what it is
:12:39. > :12:41.today. What Britain out there recognises is that we have a
:12:42. > :12:52.Christian fabric to this country - social, spiritual, moral - that we
:12:53. > :12:54.want to celebrate. At the time of Easter, the British Prime Minister
:12:55. > :12:58.putting forward his Christian faith, it seems a natural thing for him to
:12:59. > :13:01.do and an unnatural un-British thing for the humanists to do. Although
:13:02. > :13:04.the most recent census showed a sharp fall in the number of
:13:05. > :13:06.Christians in Britain, 59% of us still identify with the religion.
:13:07. > :13:09.But today's letter is further confirmation that, far from taking
:13:10. > :13:26.Christian teaching for granted, many see it as actively harmful.
:13:27. > :13:29.A year ago, three people were killed and hundreds were injured at the
:13:30. > :13:32.Boston marathon, when bombs exploded near the finish line. This
:13:33. > :13:34.afternoon, this year's event got under way amid tight security.
:13:35. > :13:37.Thousands of runners, unable to finish the race last year, are
:13:38. > :13:41.competing again. Nick Bryant is in Boston for us.
:13:42. > :13:46.The marathon has always been Boston's biggest event and this year
:13:47. > :13:52.it has taken on a much larger meaning and significance. It is part
:13:53. > :13:57.race, part remembrance and also a demonstration of this proud city's
:13:58. > :14:01.resolve. The Boston Marathon began with moments of silence and
:14:02. > :14:06.stillness. The runners contemplated not the pain that awaited them on
:14:07. > :14:12.the course but the agony that still lingers from last year's race. They
:14:13. > :14:17.were taken to the start line in a fleet of yellow buses that stretched
:14:18. > :14:22.as far as the eye could see. The length of this convoy, a measure of
:14:23. > :14:30.resolve. 36,000 people are taking part, 9000 more than last year. The
:14:31. > :14:34.mantra of the city is Boston's strong. I will be thinking about the
:14:35. > :14:39.victims and dedicated my run to them. I am a mother of six and my
:14:40. > :14:45.heart goes out to the family of the boy who lost his life last year. The
:14:46. > :14:54.idea is not to set a personal best but to reclaim the finish line at
:14:55. > :15:01.the Boston Marathon after it was taken away from us last year. Many
:15:02. > :15:06.have come from Britain, including Sophie Raworth from the BBC. I am
:15:07. > :15:11.running this for George Alagiah. I wanted to do something for him, when
:15:12. > :15:18.he rang me and told me he had bowel cancer it was such a shock. The
:15:19. > :15:23.police formed a ring of steel to guard against another attack. Even
:15:24. > :15:27.the runners faced restrictions regarding what they could take onto
:15:28. > :15:33.the course. Ordinarily the marathon is a test of runners' stamina, but
:15:34. > :15:41.this year it is very much a collective endeavour, a test of an
:15:42. > :15:45.entire city's strength. Today is the Queen's birthday - she
:15:46. > :15:50.is 88 - and is spending the day privately at Windsor Castle. There
:15:51. > :15:55.were gun salutes across the UK to mark the occasion, including this
:15:56. > :16:01.one at the Tower of London. Finally, 50 years ago, BBC Two was
:16:02. > :16:05.born. Its arrival, into the broadcasting world, was less than
:16:06. > :16:16.smooth - a power cut, wiped out much of the first evening's schedule. But
:16:17. > :16:18.it's gone on to be the home of some of the BBC's most ground-breaking
:16:19. > :16:24.and influential programmes as David Sillito reports. Good evening. This
:16:25. > :16:28.is BBC Two. This is how it all started 50 years ago. Sort of.
:16:29. > :16:34.Because this was, in reality, day two of BBC Two. The problem was that
:16:35. > :16:38.on the real launch night, a power cut meant the only thing anyone saw
:16:39. > :16:42.was this. PHONE RINGS.
:16:43. > :16:47.Excuse me. Just like Channel one. Hello? Unlike Channel one, there's
:16:48. > :16:49.nobody there! A rather bewildered Gerald
:16:50. > :16:57.Priestland reading the news, and then nothing. Here is a house. Here
:16:58. > :17:01.is a door. The first programme arrived without fanfare the next
:17:02. > :17:09.day. Play School. Hello. I'm Virginia. Hello, I'm Gordon. BBC Two
:17:10. > :17:12.was considered the serious channel. It was also the something completely
:17:13. > :17:17.different channel. The opening night line-up promised this.
:17:18. > :17:21.ANNOUNCER: At 9.35, Arkady Raikin, Russia's top comedian. And at 10.20,
:17:22. > :17:26.Off With A Bang. It was quirky, and it would try anything. ANNOUNCER: In
:17:27. > :17:29.Conversations For Tomorrow, JB Priestley entertains... From
:17:30. > :17:34.philosophy to snooker. From David Attenborough and Jacob Bronowski, to
:17:35. > :17:49.Whispering Bob and Jeremy Clarkson. It was the beginning of all this.
:17:50. > :17:54.The line-up this evening. Pamela Donald promised viewers... But at
:17:55. > :17:57.the end of that first day 50 years ago, they were just glad something
:17:58. > :18:02.had gone out. Well, that's all from us tonight. We've certainly had
:18:03. > :18:12.ourselves a ball here. Can we come again tomorrow night? Maybe round
:18:13. > :18:13.about 7.20? That's